Dave Carroll to testify on Capital Hill in Washington, DC

Carroll may sing at U. S. airline hearingsSeptember 22nd, 2009.By Brandon Walker Timmins-native Dave Carroll is taking his United Airlines experiences to Washington, DC.Today, Carroll will give a formal testimony at the Passenger Rights Stakeholder hearing discussing legislation on airline passengers' rights and musicians' instruments.Both are currently before the US Congress and the Senate."I'm there to say exactly what happened to my guitar," he said by cellphone from America's capital."I might be asked to retell the story by singing the song, which is out of the ordinary for hearings such as this."The song he's referring to is United Song One, which described how baggage handlers broke his $3,500 Taylor guitar by throwing it.Carroll created an amusing video, which was posted on the YouTube website.Millions of people learned of his treatment by United Airlines the first few days after it went online.His second video uses humour to tell the tale of the customer service agent he experienced while trying to get the company to offer a settlement.The incident occurred in the spring of 2008, when Carroll was travelling with his band , Sons of Maxwell, to Nebraska for a one-week tour.A woman sitting in the plane near Carroll watched as United Airlines baggage handlers in Chicago threw his Taylor guitar.His bass player's guitar was also thrown, but Carroll soon realized the Taylor was severely damaged.It took nine months of fighting before United said the discussions wouldn't go any further.Carroll vowed to create three videos about the experience then post them online for the world to see.The first was thrown onto YouTube in July, the second arrived shortly after and, in total, they have been viewed more than five million times to date.United Airlines eventually donated $3,000 to the Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz, after Carroll refused to accept their offer.He was invited to participate in the hearing by the FlyersRights.org, a leading advocate of the proposed legislation.The hearing will examine passenger safety-related problems such as extended ground delays.Carroll hopes his testimony will help change an industry which has taken to chucking other people's property.He recently met with three vice-presidents of United Airlines, who apologized for what happened."It's not an excuse, but they said workers might have started throwing luggage because of downsizing in the industry," Carroll said."They were trying to get more out of workers for less money."One reason (for throwing it) might be employee frustration at feeling devalued."Similar legislation is in the process of coming forward north of the border too.Carroll said the American hearings could help promote the same fight here in Canada."It's all about getting the same customer service experience for everyone, not just musicians," Carroll said."It doesn't matter if you're in first class or the back of the plane, you should get the same level of respect for your property and yourself."That's what I'm working toward."Article ID# 1763555Media coverage of Dave Carroll in Washington at the Passenger Rights HearingCBC ARTICLE (Monday September 21st, 2009) Halifax singer takes guitar-smashing tale to WashingtonCBC News Interview (Tuesday September 22nd, 2009) Studio interview prior to HearingCTV National News (Tuesday September 22nd, 2009) Lloyd Robertson intro, Report by Joy Malbon (on the fight for Passenger Rights) CTV Atlantic: (Tuesday September 22nd, 2009) Atlantic Bureau Chief Todd Battis on the performanceHALIFAX CHRONICLE HERALD (Wednesday September 23rd, 2009) Carroll speaks to airline passenger rights group (by Lois Legge) CANADA AM Coverage (Wednesday September 23rd, 2009) Interview with Seamus O’Regan from Washington after Passenger Rights Hearing EXCLAIM.CA (Thursday September 24th, 2009) Dave Carroll Takes His United Breaks Guitars Crusade to Washington (by Jason Schreurs) PASSENGER RIGHTS STAKEHOLDER HEARING Record of Proceedings